Mike reports with news of the autumnal brother of the popular Bristol Bike Fest – Oktoberfest:

Just a little more than a week to go before the Kona Oktoberfest powered by Mercedes-Benz Vito Sport will open shop at the event village in Ashton Court, Bristol. The 16th October is the day when the first ever Kona Oktoberfest will take place and you can expect a few Bavarian twists to keep you amused and motivated all the way through the day.

The Oktoberfest is the new brother to the popular Kona Bikefest and replaces the Cheddar Bikefest which took place for the last time in September 2009. The Oktoberfest follows a similar concept to the Bikefest only difference being that rather than racing for 12 long hours the Oktoberfest requires you to give you best for only 8 hours or if you like cut it shorter to only 4 hours. You can rider the event as a solo rider, in parts or in teams of 3-4 riders. The spirit of the event is a healthy mix of racing, enjoying the great trails and the Bristol typical banter as well as bringing another great year of MTB events and races to a well deserved end.

The course

The course of the Oktoberfest features all the well liked trail sections Ashton Court has to offer with a few minor changes thrown in. The loop is around 7 km long and has around 140m of climbing in it…and contrary to the Bikefest in June does not have the much feared bridge. If you are at all concerned about the potential wet conditions we might face in October you can rest assured that going by the soaking we all received during the 2009 Bikefest the course can cope with any amount of rain and dries out very quickly as well.

The Bavarian Twist

We have lots of little things planned that will underpin our name choice for the event. So expect our signing on staff to be dressed in ‘dirndl’ (traditional Bavarian dress), for the trophies to have a certain Bavarian touch and maybe for the music (maybe even out on course) to give you the feeling that you are sitting in the middle of the ‘Hofbräuhaus’. We will also have some fantastic German style beer glasses as trophies for the winners as well as on ‘loan’ at the bar. On top of that expect some Bavarian decorations and hopefully (we are still working on this) some Bavarian snacks which will go rather well with your after race beers!

Where does the Oktoberfest take place?

The event will be based in the same location as the Kona Bikefest – Ashton Court. The racing starts at 9am or 1pm if you are starting in the 2nd 4 hour event. The site is open for campers from Friday to Sunday – please note though that due to ‘Cancer Research 10k Run’ that takes part on Sunday that the campground can not be left between 10am and 1pm. Please keep that in mind when you plan your camping weekend. The Oktoberfest will start of with Friday afternoon/evening registration, DJ playing some tunes and the bar and food stands being open for business. Saturday night will see the main party with prize presentation, DJ and bar.

Get your entry fee (more or less at least) back in some great gifts!

As for the last two years we will have again the Bikefest loyalty gift which will be worth more than £ 25. Everybody who took part in the June Bikefest and is returning to the Oktoberfest will be entitled to the gift which will be handed out at sign-on of the Kona Oktoberfest.

Don’t miss out on saving yourself some beer money for the after party!

Entry to the Oktoberfest is still open – simply go to the event website www.bike-fest.com and either download an entry form or use the online entry facilities. We will also have ‘entry on the day’ available, but please be aware that there is £ 5 surcharge for those entries. So better enter now and keep yourself some beer money for Saturday night.